media@drugpolicy.org
Washington, D.C. – Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Halt All Lethal Trafficking of Fentanyl (HALT) Act (H.R. 27) in a 312-108 vote. This counterproductive bill would permanently schedule all fentanyl-related substances as Schedule I without first testing them for benefits or harm, blocking potential research that could uncover new overdose medications. It would also create new mandatory minimum sentences for fentanyl-related substances – harsh penalties that will shatter families and communities, allow for unjust sentences that do not consider individual circumstances, and divert resources away from health interventions that are desperately needed to curb the fentanyl overdose crisis. A broad coalition of advocacy groups sent a letter to House and Senate leadership this week urging them to oppose this bill.
In response to House passage of the HALT Fentanyl Act, the following non-partisan drug policy, law enforcement, parent, criminal justice, civil rights, public health, and public policy research organizations released the below statements:
Susan Ousterman, Founder of Vilomah Memorial Foundation, who lost her son to an accidental overdose in 2020:
“I lost my son to a fentanyl overdose and don’t want another parent to experience that pain. My son didn’t die because there weren’t enough laws; he died because he couldn’t access the care he needed. It is deeply hypocritical for Congress to claim a commitment to reducing overdose deaths while continuing to pass legislation that prioritizes punitive measures over meaningful solutions. Instead of perpetuating cycles of stigma and incarceration, we should create pathways to healing and recovery by focusing on treatment, harm reduction, and the underlying social determinants of health. The actions of Congress must align with the commitments they made to families like mine to reduce these preventable deaths.”
Lt. Diane Goldstein (Ret.), Executive Director of the Law Enforcement Action Partnership:
“I lost my brother to an overdose, so I understand the pain and urgency so many families feel amidst this crisis. But as a retired police professional, I know we can’t punish our way out of this problem. Increasing penalties for fentanyl won’t deter behavior. If anything, it will only make people even less likely to call 911 in the event of an overdose. Mandatory minimums too often end up punishing low-level drug users—not kingpins—and diverting precious resources toward prosecution and incarceration instead of treatment. We should be focusing on saving lives by increasing access to public health interventions, not doubling down on the shortsighted strategy that got us here.”
Ju Nyeong Park, Ph.D., M.H.S., Assistant Professor of Medicine and Epidemiology, The Warren Alpert Medical School, Brown University:
“Contrary to popular belief, drug laws that focus solely on supply reduction and incarceration have largely failed to stem the flow of illicit drugs into our country. And paradoxically, crackdowns on a high-demand substance create a market incentive to design more potent substances; researchers have noted that crackdowns on prescription opioids and heroin inadvertently fueled the emergence of fentanyl in the drug supply. If passed, HALT will create market pressures to shift the epidemic from fentanyl to more deadly substances. And if Congress does not couple these supply shocks with evidence-based overdose prevention and treatment services, we will be back to 2015, scrambling to find solutions in the dark as drug traffickers find new ways to meet the demand. What we need from Congress are policy solutions rooted in health, science, and evidence, not more criminalization.”
Maritza Perez Medina, Director of Federal Affairs at the Drug Policy Alliance:
“The only thing the HALT Fentanyl Act will do is halt the health approaches that our communities need to stay alive. Increasing criminal penalties and expanding mandatory minimums puts more lives at risk – when the first Trump administration criminalized all fentanyl-related substances, overdose deaths rose 60%, from 67,367 in 2018 to 107,941 in 2022. This counterproductive bill will block health solutions to the overdose crisis, exacerbate racial disparities in the criminal legal system, and lead to an even more potent, unknown drug supply. We call on the Senate to reject these dangerous efforts and save lives with health solutions that expand access to medications for opioid use disorder, make effective treatment more available, and allow research to test substances for potential benefit or harm.”
Jesseyln McCurdy, Executive Vice President for Government Affairs at The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights:
“Harsh federal drug laws and mandatory minimums have caused the federal prison population to explode. We call on Congress to oppose this legislation, which threatens to repeat the same mistakes that were made with the so-called ‘war on drugs.’ To address fentanyl-related deaths, we strongly believe in health-based approaches that are effective in addressing this public health crisis. This legislation will not deter crime, protect public safety, or decrease drug use or trafficking — it will instead only exacerbate mass incarceration and racial disparities within our criminal-legal system.”
Jason Pye, Vice President of Due Process Institute:
“The HALT Fentanyl Act is a deeply misguided and harmful policy prescription to address the current opioid crisis in the United States. This bill, which classifies all fentanyl-related substances (FRS) as schedule I drugs, inflicts harsh mandatory minimums, and provides no offramp for harmless FRS, is a reversion to failed draconian policies from the war on drugs. Congress should instead focus on legislation that prioritizes substance abuse treatment, rehabilitation, and non-carceral solutions to combat the rise of fentanyl.”
For more information on fentanyl and why we need a public health approach to address the overdose crisis, visit https://drugpolicy.org/campaign/build-a-health-approach-to-fentanyl/
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About the Drug Policy Alliance The Drug Policy Alliance (DPA) addresses the harms of drug use and drug criminalization through policy solutions, organizing, and public education. We advocate for a holistic approach to drugs that prioritizes health, social supports, and community wellbeing. DPA opposes punitive approaches that destabilize people, block access to care, and drain communities of resources. We believe that the regulation of drugs should be grounded in evidence, health, equity, and human rights. In collaboration with other movements, we change laws, advance justice, and save lives.
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